Mr. Hoke's Japan Highlights

Your 24-hour Tour Director will meet you at the airport and remain with your group until your final airport departure. You’ll also have a private coach and driver while touring .

Jangling neon and tranquil temples, radical fashion choices and quietly practiced traditions. Japan's sprawling, chaotic capital combines cutting-edge technology with an age-old culture, generating a directed energy and graceful drive unique to Tokyo. See what all of the buzz is about with a local licensed guide. Start with a whiff of the miraculous at the Senso Temple, where sacred incense smoke is said to have curative powers. Built to commemorate Emperor Meiji and his empress, the Meiji Shrine is one of the most important Shinto shrines in the country. Yearly festivals bring various groups to its iris garden and Treasure House, including the "Seven-Five-Three Festival," in which young children arrive dressed in mini kimonos.

Meiji Shrine, dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. Emperor Meiji was the first emperor of modern Japan, born in 1852 and ascending to the throne in 1868 at the peak of the Meiji Restoration when the power was switched from the feudal Tokugawa government to the emperor. Learn the difference between Shinto and Buddism

Take a trip to the Akihabara district, a mecca for electronic goods and home to Japan's otaku (diehard fan) geek culture. Explore the thousands of shops dedicated to anime, manga and video games.

Karaoke is a popular form of entertainment which originated in Japan. Immerse yourself in this environment, grab a mic, your favorite song and sing your heart out in a Tokyo karaoke venue.

Step into the misty beauty of a traditional Japanese watercolor. Peaceful lakes, stunning gardens, Hakone one of the prettiest destinations for city-weary Tokyoites. Experience Owakudani, the area around a crater created during the last eruption of Mount Hakone some 3000 years ago. Today, much of the area is an active volcanic zone with sulfurous fumes and hot springs. Watch how far you travel, though -- Hakone was once the feudal checkpoint for visitors to the capital, with all guns required to stay outside the borders and all women required to stay in. Please note: Owakudani Boiling Valley and the Hakone Ropeway are subject to weather conditions, and an alternative activity will be provided.

Matsumoto Castle is one of the grandest castles in Japan. Its five-tiered, six-story main tower, built in late 16th century, is the oldest surviving castle tower in the nation. This medieval fortress is famously photogenic, with a wide moat, swimming swans and hundreds of cherry blossom trees in the Spring.

Nara can be an eye-opening experience. The enormous 50-foot bronze Buddha statue in Todai-ji was dedicated in AD 752 by having a priest symbolically "open his eyes" by scrambling up and painting them in (the original paintbrush remains at the temple); strings dangling off the brush allowed the dignitaries on the ground to hang on and participate in the action. The sense of "more is better" continues at Kasuga Shrine, where a thousand intricate bronze lanterns hang prettily off the building. Don't bother the wild deer roaming the adjacent Nara Park -- once considered messengers of the gods, they are still a nationally protected treasure.

Todai-ji is one of Japan's most famous and historically significant temples and a landmark of Nara. The massive building houses one of Japan's largest bronze statues of Buddha (Daibutsu). At 15 meters tall, the seated Buddha represents Vairocana and is flanked by two Bodhisattvas.

Nara’s most celebrated Shinto shrine.

With over 2,000 Buddhist temples and shrines still intact, Kyoto shines as one of the best preserved Imperial cities in Japan. Visit the famous Zen Buddhist Temple Kinkakuji, or Golden Temple, that gets its name from the pure leaf gold that covers the top two floors. Next, head to Inari, the main shrine of the god of business, and see the thousands of red torii, or Japanese gates, that snake their way up the hill to the inner shrine. The Sanjusangendo Temple offers visitors an unusual and unbelievable sight. Its main hall is filled with 1,000 life-size statues of soldiers of the Thousand Armed Kannon which stand to protect the main deity of the temple.

Tour the extraordinary city that suffered an unimaginable destruction and incredible rebirth to become the thriving city it is today. At Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, see the Peace Memorial Museum and the Atomic Bomb Dome, the skeletal remains of a pre-blast building, for an idea of the catastrophic effects the Atomic bomb had on the city. The park, museum, and Atomic Bomb Dome act as a symbol of peace and as a memorial for those who died.

The Atomic Bomb Dome, formerly the Hiroshima Prefectural Industrial Promotion Hall, was destroyed by the world's first atomic bomb dropping. It was called the "Atomic Bomb Dome" for its distinctive domed steel frame and was included in UNESCO's World Heritage List in December 1996 as a symbol of the devastation caused by the first atomic bomb in the history of humankind. It represents the importance of the abolition of nuclear weapons and lasting world peace.

Hiroshima Peace Memorial Park, located in the center of Hiroshima City was built in its current location near the hypocenter of the atomic bombing during WWII on August 6, 1945. The park is home to many memorials and monuments, including the Cenotaph for the A-Bomb Victims, the Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum, the Hiroshima National Peace Memorial Hall for the Atomic Bomb Victims.

Translated in English the "shrunken-scenery garden" is a perfect description of this 17th-century traditional Japanese garden. It depicts the scenery of mountains and rivers, the atmosphere of Kyoto and the deep mountains in a miniature form. Take a moment to stroll around the beautiful pond, the cleverly placed valleys, bridges, teahouses and gazebos.

Glide through the tranquil waters, past the iconic red Torii gate and into the realm of the sacred at the Itsukushima Shrine. As you step off the ferry you will be greeted by the “messengers of the deities”, or the tame Miyajima deer, that are always found wandering around the shrine. After visiting this impressive structure browse through the many craft stores, bakeries and street-food carts on Omotesando Street - see if you’re brave enough to sample a traditional dish of conger eel.